Belem, capital of the state of Para, is a port city and gateway to Brazil’s lower Amazon region. By Guajará Bay, the riverfront district Cidade Velha (old town) preserves Portuguese-colonial architecture, including churches, colorful azulejo-tile houses and a 17th-century fortification known as Forte do Presepio. Ver-o-Peso is a vast, open-air market on the water selling Amazonian fish, fruit and handicrafts.